Katie Melua / Denzal Sinclaire

The first ticketed concert of the festival is a double bill at Club Soda in the slightly seedy area of rue St. Catherine and boulevard St. Laurent with Katie Melua and Denzal Sinclaire. If jazz doesn't float your boat there's aways the strippers and lap dances down the block. I almost didn't make it into this concert. Not because of the other entertainment choices in the area, but because it was sold out. Hanging out in front of the theatre as showtime passed eventually lead the patient to nirvana. No overpriced ticket from the creepy fat scalper, but a last minute ticket released from the Club Soda box office.

Katie Melua

I'd heard of this young British singer/songwriter but never seen her performing before. She's sounds more like a pop artist than jazz artist but I enjoyed her engaging performance. Her most recognizable tune for me was her hit single The Closest Thing to Crazy which received radio play a few years ago.

Denzal Sinclaire

I had already caught Denzal's show at the Vancouver International Jazz Festival this year at Performance Works on Granville Island. He performed mostly songs from his latest album My One and Only Love in his inimitably smooth and warm style. This show was similar but abbreviated as there was only one set. Which meant that he only had the chance to tell one joke–the turtles and the snail joke–which I think I've heard him tell at every concert I've seen.